UPSC Prelims 2021 CSAT Paper II · Q31 of 79 Comprehension medium

Passage

Directions for the following 4 (four) items : Read the following four passages and answer the items that follow. Your answers to these items should be based on the passages only. Passage – 1 With respect to what are called denominations of religion, if everyone is left to be a judge of his own religion, there is no such thing as religion that is wrong; but if they are to be a judge of each other's religion, there is no such thing as a religion that is right, and therefore all the world is right or all the world is wrong in the matter of religion.

What is the most logical assumption that can be made from the passage given above ?

  1. (a) No man can live without adhering to some religious denomination.
  2. (b) It is the duty of everyone to propagate one's religious denomination.
  3. (c) Religious denominations tend to ignore the unity of man. ✓ UPSC's answer
  4. (d) Men do not understand their own religious denomination.

Why the answer is (c)

• The passage argues that if individuals judge their own religion, all are right; if they judge each other, all are wrong or right collectively, creating a logical paradox.

• This paradox implies that religious denominations focus on individual or group-specific judgments rather than a shared, universal truth.

• By highlighting the conflict between self-judgment and mutual judgment, the text suggests that denominations fail to recognize a common ground or unity among people.

• Therefore, the most logical assumption is that religious denominations tend to ignore the unity of man, as they prioritize distinct identities over collective harmony.

Why the other options are wrong

(a) No man can live without adhering to some religious denomination.
The passage discusses the logic of judging religion, not the necessity of adhering to a denomination for survival.
(b) It is the duty of everyone to propagate one's religious denomination.
The text does not mention any duty or obligation to propagate one's religious beliefs.
(d) Men do not understand their own religious denomination.
The passage assumes individuals are capable of judging their own religion, not that they lack understanding of it.

Asked in the CSAT Paper II of the UPSC Civil Services Preliminary Examination 2021, held on 10 October 2021. Question and answer key: Union Public Service Commission. Explanation: UPSC Answer Check.

Reading the answer is not the same as getting it right under a clock. Practise this question with UPSC's negative marking, and anything you miss goes into an error notebook until you get it right twice.

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